EPA rolls out new strategy to fast-track technologies for cutting PFAS pollution

Lee Zeldin, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, introduced the PFAS Technology Evaluation, Coordination, Innovation, and Harmonization (PFAS TECH) strategy to hasten the development of solutions for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly called forever chemicals. The initiative will prioritize R&D and field trials of technologies that can extract or break down PFAS, including foam fractionation, which separates the chemicals from water, and supercritical water oxidation, which uses extreme heat and pressure to decompose them.

EPA plans to run pilot-scale demonstrations at contaminated Superfund locations, military installations, and municipal water-treatment plants, and will issue grant funding through the Science to Achieve Results and Small Business Innovation Research programs. While the agency continues to address PFAS contamination, it is also reconsidering the Biden administration’s recent drinking-water limits on several PFAS compounds. Earlier this year, EPA and the Department of Health and Human Services proposed adding microplastics and certain pharmaceuticals to the draft Sixth Contaminant Candidate List for drinking water.